«The Ramones’ genius is that they could say in two minutes what it takes most bands five minutes to say. You hear any of their songs once and you’ll walk away knowing it. I also wanna say that if Joey Ramone and Jeff Spicoli had a baby, it’d be Sum-41.» — Deryck Whibley, Sum-41

2. RAMONESPunk exists because of the false assumption that the Ramones can be imitated. "1-2-3-4!" Three chords. "Second verse same as the first." Technically speaking, it’s simple. Legend has it that in every citywhere the Ramones played in support of their 1976 debut, a handful of punk kids started up bands, thinking that they could do it, too. But the Ramones’ loud-fast style masked a pop genius. Slow their tempos, and you’ve got Beach Boys melodies. Replace lyrics about sniffin’ glue and eatin’ refried beans, and you’ve got the Ronettes/ Give everyone matching leather jackets, and you’ve got the punk rock Beatles. Just four lads from Queens who birthed thousands of bands, then blew each one away. Like sharks, they didn’t evolve — they didn’t need to.